This blog is about various boat and environment related topics that I care to comment on. First and foremost, this blog is about skin on frame boats, their construction and use, as well as paddle and other stuff related to skin boat use.

Thursday, February 25, 2016

Time to Overhaul the Playboat

I decided it was time to overhaul the playboat. Main reason being that the sunlight had deteriorated the lashings in the cockpit area. The skin was still OK. As I often do, I used materials in this boat that I haven't used before to see how they hold up. And the lashings which were done in cheap poly-unbraided string had gotten eaten by the sun. So, strip off the skin and proceed. This is part one of the series showing what the frame looked like after I pulled off the skin. Subsequent parts will show repairs and overhauls.

1

Here''s the skin pulled off the boat, actually cut off. I won't reuse it. It's nylon which shrinks when the sun shines on it. I aim to replace it polyester.

2

The boat sans skin, defrocked, naked. Goose pond and SF skyline in the background along with US Govt. cyclone fence separating us from the federal land.

3

Deteriorated lashings - the primary reason for rework.

4

Though the wood has gotten ragged and the varnish deteriorated, the lashings are still good where they weren't exposed to the sun.

5

With outdoor storage, spiders move in, hence the cobwebs. Also note doweled stringer come loose with dowels working their way out of their holes. Needs to be backed up with lashings, or heavens forbid, screws.

6

Here's the fuzzy wood look that wood gets when repeatedly exposed to water. This is pine. Doug fir and redwood which I also used in this boat do not get this disease.

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About Me

I like to look into old and mostly abandoned technologies that people used before the industrial age and also technologies that were used in non agricultural societies. I have a hunch that some of these technologies will again become relevant in a more resource-poor future.
If you want to contact me directly, you can reach me at: my first name followed by nomadic at gmail dot com